General Information

Elephant yam is a herbaceous, perennial plant producing either one or two large leaves annually that can be up to 2 metres tall. These leaves grow from a massive underground tuber that can weigh up to 25 kilos[

An excellent treatment of the family Araceae, giving lots of information about the plants, how to grow them, their uses etc. I found it a bit disordered - if you want all the information on a specific species you have to trawl through the whole book.

].
The plant is cultivated for its edible tuber in lowland tropical Asia[

An excellent treatment of the family Araceae, giving lots of information about the plants, how to grow them, their uses etc. I found it a bit disordered - if you want all the information on a specific species you have to trawl through the whole book.

].

Known Hazards

The tuber of the wild species is considered to be totally toxic and inedible, the wild plant only being used for medicineal purposes[

Traditional medicinal uses of 126 species from Papua New Guinea, including information on any modern research into the plants.

].
Although no specific mention has been seen for the cultivated forms of species, it belongs to a family where most of the members contain calcium oxalate crystals. This substance is toxic fresh and, if eaten, makes the mouth, tongue and throat feel as if hundreds of small needles are digging in to them. However, calcium oxalate is easily broken down either by thoroughly cooking the plant or by fully drying it and, in either of these states, it is safe to eat the plant. People with a tendency to rheumatism, arthritis, gout, kidney stones and hyperacidity should take especial caution if including this plant in their diet[

A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.

An excellent treatment of the family Araceae, giving lots of information about the plants, how to grow them, their uses etc. I found it a bit disordered - if you want all the information on a specific species you have to trawl through the whole book.

An excellent, in-depth look at the main vegetable crops that can be grown in the Tropics, plus many less well-known plants.

]. An interesting technique used in Indonesia is to dig up the tuber after one year and then replant it upside down. This stimulates the lateral buds into growth and increases the overall size of the tuber[

An excellent treatment of the family Araceae, giving lots of information about the plants, how to grow them, their uses etc. I found it a bit disordered - if you want all the information on a specific species you have to trawl through the whole book.

An excellent treatment of the family Araceae, giving lots of information about the plants, how to grow them, their uses etc. I found it a bit disordered - if you want all the information on a specific species you have to trawl through the whole book.

].
The plant produces one or two enormous leaves and one short flowering stem annually. When ripe for pollination, the flowers have a foetid smell to attract carrion flies and midges. This smell disappears once the flowers have been pollinated[

An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.

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Like many species in the family Araceae, this plant has the ability to heat the flowering spadix as the pollen becomes ready for fertilization. This heat greatly increases the strength of the aroma released by the plant, thus attracting more pollinating insects. It can also have the effect of making the insects more active, thus increasing the level of fertilization[

An excellent treatment of the family Araceae, giving lots of information about the plants, how to grow them, their uses etc. I found it a bit disordered - if you want all the information on a specific species you have to trawl through the whole book.

Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

An excellent treatment of the family Araceae, giving lots of information about the plants, how to grow them, their uses etc. I found it a bit disordered - if you want all the information on a specific species you have to trawl through the whole book.

]. The curd is relatively tasteless, but it absorbs flavours well and so can be used as a carbohydrate element in a wide range of other foods[

An excellent treatment of the family Araceae, giving lots of information about the plants, how to grow them, their uses etc. I found it a bit disordered - if you want all the information on a specific species you have to trawl through the whole book.

Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

An excellent treatment of the family Araceae, giving lots of information about the plants, how to grow them, their uses etc. I found it a bit disordered - if you want all the information on a specific species you have to trawl through the whole book.

].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - best sown in containers as soon as it is ripe and the pot sealed in a plastic bag to retain moisture. It usually germinates in 1 - 8 months at 24°c[

]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on untill large enough to plant out.
Division of corms when the plant is dormant. Either 1 year old corms or portions of 3 year old corms are used[